Another day, another fraction

 Not a huge amount to report for today. 

The morning was spent engrossed in Bob Mortimer's autobiography And Away while waiting for a chap to come and have a look at a possible problem area in the garden.

Once he had left, I fuelled up the brush cutter and continued my Herculean effort in the orchard. By the end of the day, I estimate that I have knocked back about four fifths of the undergrowth.

But, and it is a big BUT, I have consciously been avoiding the top, right hand corner of the plot. It is a fairly steep bank and is the one area of the orchard where we have yet to take out the Elder shoots, cut down the fruit trees* and burn the debris from the hedge laying in 2021.

It is a bloody mess and will be difficult to clear. 30% and I really need to bring out the chain saw, get a bonfire going and finish this job in the next few weeks.

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*These are long beyond pruning back in to productivity. They are also old and uninspiring varieties and we are, as yet, undecided whether to replant with fruit or replace them with native British trees. I am very tempted by the latter option as we already have a fine young Ash growing there.

What's the worst than could happen?

 Much of this morning was spent on administrative stuff. Pension forms were completed. tax forms were checked and filed, an agenda for an upcoming Horticultural Club meeting was drafted.* This admin extravaganza culminated in a forty minute wait to talk to HM Revenue & Customs and get them to make a tax code adjustment to my little Civil Service pension.

The afternoon saw me undertake either a work of genius, or possibly the most stupidest thing I have ever done.  The blade on the porn mower is well past its best and a spare blade has lurked in the shed for years. The reason that it hasn't been fitted is because it isn't quite right ... it is the right length and has the right size holes, it is just that it is missing a single hole that aligns with a pin on the mower drive shaft.

I decided that it could be made to fit by simply drilling a hole in the blade in the right place. Well, nearly the right place ... a couple of minutes with a Dremel and a grinding stone had it locking on to the drive shaft nicely.

I tightened it all up and pulled on the starting cord a couple of times. The porn mower roared in to life and the new blade cuts beautifully. However, I do feel a little nervous about having a 20" piece of sharpened metal spinning at several hundred revolutions per minute in close proximity to my ankles. After all, I have potentially impacted its structural integrity. 

In response to today's Journal entry title ... I'm not sure I really want to think about that!

I spent a further hour up in the orchard and can report that two thirds of it are now cut back. I can see a bonfire happening in the next week or so, or a monumental session with a rake and pitch fork to clear away the grass and nettle cuttings.

My final exertion was a walk on the Three Miler with Bobbyn and the dogs. We had an interesting chat where she seemed interested in a piece of self-analysis, whilst I suggested that this was completely unnecessary and that she simply need to ensure that calendars were shared or synchronised. 

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* Don't Ask! I felt guilty at last year's AGM and offered to support a friend who had literally been thrown under the bus by 30%.  In the absence of any volunteers for the vacant Chairman role, she volunteered Hoppy.  Now Hoppy is a very skilled gardener, but he was in the process of assuming a new role for a large seed producer out in East Anglia. I knew he was going to be very busy, so I stupidly volunteered to act as co-chair ... I seem to have been doing a lot of the chairman stuff over the past few months.

Rinse and repeat

 Monday was very similar to Sunday, except there was no visit from Mr & Mrs Tweedy.

The dogs were walked early in the day and the afternoon was spent attempting to tame the jungle that is optimistically referred to as  the orchard.  By the time the rain set in I had cleared the nettles and goose grass (Galium aparine) from about half of the orchard. The site of the old hen house* is now visible and the log shed** should be accessible after the next phase of the battle plan.

The only excitement was when the brush cutter flipped up a chunk of debris. It hit me squarely in the mouth and I could feel a trickle of blood, that and the rain put paid to any further clearance and I retired for the day.

30% enquired about the minor injury and I, somewhat, embellished the facts by advising that I had disturbed a bear in the undergrowth and had wrested it in to submission.

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* This was a dilapidated 8' by 10' shed with an attached run that served as home to our chickens until they were decimated by a fox attack last year. 30% and I dismantled this rat infested shack last year and ceremoniously burnt the timbers on a bonfire.

** A corrugated iron, open fronted shed that has a jaunty lean due to rabbit induced undermining.  The shed bears the name Rose Cottage for some unknown reason. It was originally filled with a huge pile of kitchen worktops and other particle board offcuts.  These were cleared and disposed off and it is now stacked with several cubic metres of logs from the trees felled in our garden clearance activities.

A start in the orchard

 It was another beautiful day and my first objective was to walk dogs before it got too warm for them. 

We headed out on to the Three Miler and reached The Grange at the edge of the village, before turning and heading back home.  The reason for an out 'n back walk rather than a circular route is that one of the lanes is still incredibly wet and muddy following a very wet Winter and Spring.  When I say "muddy" I mean "MUDDY", the lane is about four hundred yards long and has a stream on one side and a high bank to the other. Over the past months repeated land slips from the bank have dumped large quantities of earth on the road and, at one point on the stream side, the land at the edge of the road has subsided and is now about 3' lower.

Basically it is filthy down there and I am just too lazy to wash off three dogs if I can manage to keep them clean walking a similar distance on cleaner lanes.

I returned home after the walk to be greeted by 30% and Mr & Mrs Tweedy*. We sat out on the patio, enjoying the sunshine and exchanged news before they headed off with some of the plants that had been removed from the beds yesterday.

My plan for the afternoon was to knock back the nettles and long grass in the orchard, so I got the brush cutter from the garage and assembled it in the workshop. This was one of those points where I took delight in the luxury of time now available to me ... Normally I would have connected the cutter head to the motor unit, topped up the petrol tank and just got on with the job because tomorrow would be consumed by work.

However, that scenario no longer applies. I had the time to remove the blade, take a file and sharpen the cutter blade before I even considered starting the job. Once I was happy with a nice sharp cutter I headed out to the orchard and made a start. It was hot, physical work but it was one of those jobs that is very satisfying as one can easily see the swathes of orchard now free of 2' high nettles and grass.

I estimate that I have cleared a quarter, maybe one third, of the orchard, but I'm free tomorrow too ... weather permitting.

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* Her Parents

Divide & Conquer ... Us verses the Garden

 It was another glorious day and we hit the garden with a vengeance.

In yesterday's Journal entry I made mention of the large gardens, but didn't go in to detail of how much work will be needed to get them back to a semblance of order.  

The orchard, for example, is the best part of a quarter of an acre but was dominated by two overgrown conifers and apple and plum trees that were long past their best. They hadn't been pruned in years and fruit laden branches had been torn off in high Autumn winds. Over the past three years we have felled the conifers and the trees that were beyond rejuvenation and converted them to firewood. The orchard hedge* was laid, and mountains of particle board, corrugated roofing** and other domestic debris were collected up and disposed of. 

In the garden, trees have been pruned, the vegetable patch has been fenced and dug over and the borders are being attended to ... slowly.

This all sounds like it is nearly sorted, but this is far from the truth. There are years of work to tame and restrain the rampant growth and a bad back last year meant that very little was achieved other than lawn mowing. We will be well in to our retirement before we sit back and say "well that's the garden finished".

30% spent this morning reducing the size of huge clumps of Stinking Iris and Orange Day Lillies that have run rampant over the years. I grabbed a few tools and dismantled an old teak picnic table*** that we inherited when we bought the house. The legs are well beyond repair and, since 30% has invested in a replacement that now sits on the patio that we had laid last Autumn, it is time for it to go. The planks forming the table top and seats are still sound, so these have been stacked in the car port for a future project.

A leisurely lunch was taken  and we returned to the garden. The afternoon was spent dividing an Achillea Cloth of Gold and a Red Hot Poker followed by much weeding and further thinning to create space for the divided plants.

It was well past five o'clock by the time we finished and settled ourselves out on the patio with a beer and a glass of wine.

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* An optimistic descriptor, if ever there was one! The "hedge" was long neglected and had been supplemented by a length of stock fencing. It was better described as a row of 20' high hawthorn trees spaced at about five to eight feet distance. A local hedge layer came and laid them in the first Spring and we now have a fantastic length of hedging, bursting with life and providing a nesting habitat for the local birds.

** Potentially asbestos based

*** I shouldn't complain, as it has served us well for the past three years, but shifting the damned thing every time I mow the lawn is a complete pain in the backside!

New Pastures

 Today was another beautiful day after a fairly miserable, soggy early Spring.  

The fine weather has encouraged the grass to grow and much of today was spent mowing the lawns and strimming the Cow Parsley on the verges outside the house.

At this point it might become apparent that we are no longer living at The Pile so, with little else to report, I'll do my best to give a reasonably concise account of our move to a new home.

Prior to the Covid pandemic 30% and I put The Pile on the market, as we decided that we would like a little more garden and a quieter location away from the High Street in the village.  We had a few bites and several time wasters during the pandemic, but all of these came to naught. We therefore took the place off the market and spent our time organising a wedding instead.

In 2020 we entered a state of marital harmony and the days at the Pile slipped by. After all, we had spent the best part of twelve years extending, extensively restoring and redecorating the place and everyone we knew said it was lovely and looked somewhat baffled when moving was mentioned.

In the Autumn of that year I was sat at my desk when the 'phone rang. I picked it up and was very surprised to take a call from Gilles.*  Gilles is the son of a couple who own a rather quaint cottage out on the Three Miler. Sadly, his father died a few years ago, but his Mum was still there.

A rather rambling conversation ensued, but the main point was that the property was becoming a little too much for his aged mother and she was planning to move out to Herefordshire to be closer to Gilles.  Gilles had originally been in line to inherit the cottage, but was settled in Herefordshire and therefore wanted to offer it to us. He had seen how we had restored and refurbished the Pile and felt that 30% and I were the ideal people to continue his father's legacy.

Although we were touched by this compliment, we** were unsure whether we wanted another project, but arranged to take a look around the property.

A few days later we turned up and discovered that the brick cottage was actually half timbered*** and sat in 3/4 of an acre of gardens and orchard with a well, a vegetable patch and the nearest neighbour was a quarter of a mile away.

The property needed a lot of updating, but we fell in love and after much faffing around a price was agreed, a buyer was found for the Pile and by February 2021 we had moved in.

This narrative makes it all sound wonderful so, for balance, I must briefly mention the challenges of downsizing and the perils of booking a removal firm who claim to do the packing ... but don't really, a seller who won't name their price, the risk of the property being placed on the open market and septic tanks in general. 

We live and learn! 

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* 30% and I know Gilles and his family from walking the dogs and have had many conversations leaning on the gate to their cottage, but we were never close friends. We have dog walked with Gilles, his wife and Archie and, on one occasion, they came to the Pile for dinner, but were acquaintances rather than friends.

** I

*** The cottage had been built around 1700 and the timbers of the outer walls had suffered over the intervening years and had been replaced with local bricks, probably in the 1800s. However the interior walls retained the timbers with lath and plaster infill.

Well that took longer than it should have

Process development, process refinement or just plain old process have been significant elements for most of my working life.

As I enter retirement I am less than delighted to find that there are still some absolutely horrendous processes out there, lurking like some malevolent, disfigured homunculi. Let me explain ...

In a recent chat with our financial advisor, it was agreed that there was little point transferring the small amount of pension funds that were accrued in the nine months of employment. The best thing to do was to simply withdraw the funds and use them for living expenses.  This morning I wandered over to the computer and applied myself to this task.  

At this point I will mention that my former employe had complicated matters by switching pension providers mid way through my employment, so it was necessary to send out two virtually identical requests to Scottish Widows and Standard Life. 

The Scottish Widows request seemed relatively straightforward.* I accessed my on-line account, found the service I needed and followed their instructions to send an email to the address provided ...simple, a little basic perhaps, but job done!

Then on to Standard Life. Again I accessed my on-line account, found the service I needed and clicked on a "button" to initiate the process to withdraw my funds. I then exited my account, stupidly thinking that was nice and simple too.

Twenty minutes later I received an email from Standard Life advising that a reply to my request had been posted against my account. I logged on again and opened up their message. It acknowledged my request to cash in my funds and informed me that I needed to call a telephone number to progress my request. At this point I swore under my breath and asked the rhetorical question "why the fuck didn't they just provide the 'phone number when I clicked on the cash in your funds button?"

I called the number, waited in a queue for 10 minutes before a member of their staff went through various identify checks and then asked what I needed. I advised her that I wanted to cash in my small fund and she advised that I had come through to the wrong number and needed to be transferred elsewhere.

She kindly transferred me and another 10 minute wait ensued, followed by further identity checks and a reiteration of my requirement. I was then advised that I had come through to the wrong number and needed to call the number that I had dialled in the first instance. In my mind I was saying "For fucks sake!" but I maintained an aura of restrained frustration and advised that the number given was my starting point to this charade.

A further transfer and 10 minute wait ensued, during which I was given the  option to have a call back in the next 48 hours. I pointed out that a further ten minute wait was better than 2 days and hung on in the queue. Eventually my call was answered, identify checks were completed and my reason for calling was ascertained.

After a couple of basic questions about why I wanted to withdraw the cash, I was advised about financial fraud and asked whether an annuity might be an option.  I pointed out that the matter had been discussed with my IFA and withdrawing the funds was my best option.

At this point I was advised that a set of forms would be put in the post. I would need to complete and return these to move my request forward.

At this point I realised that the forms, accompanied by warnings of financial fraud and alternative options could have been posted across to me following the first fucking click of the "cash in my fund" button on the bloody web site! Instead I endured thirty plus minutes on the 'phone, involving three different Customer Service Representatives to achieve the same goal.

There is still work out there for a good Operational Architect.

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* so far!

Catching up

Clearly I have not made the greatest of starts to maintaining The Journal, but, hopefully, the following summary will get me back on track ... it is fair to say that, having cut the chains that tied me to a desk, I am somewhat reluctant to sit at one for hours on end.

Thursday, 2nd May, 2024

The main achievement was to finish the project for The ELF.  

I was recruited to produce a set of four coasters for their 5th Anniversary, which is traditionally marked with a gift made from wood. The ELF supplied me with a number of slices of oak that had formed part of the table decorations at their Wedding Reception on 4th May, 2019. These had dried and split over the intervening years and were perfect for a set of hexagonal coasters with a resin infill. 

The coasters were delivered in the early evening and The ELF was delighted with the result. I still have concerns over the suitability of the resin and promised that I was more than willing to re-work them, if needed.

We then continued on from that delivery to Redditch College to attend the Catering Students' Mexican Dinner.  The college catering course holds regular set menu dining evenings to give the students experience of cooking and serving meals to the general public.  The food is always attractively priced and of very good quality, and tonight was no exception. We were joined by a small group of friends and had a fantastic evening and three delicious courses of Mexican fare.

Friday, 3rd May, 2024

The morning was spent hurling clothing and groceries into bags before throwing ourselves and Hobson* in to the car and heading over to Worcester to pick up B&H. 

B&H and a colossal quantity of booze were collected and we headed over to Brewood*** in South Staffordshire. We arrived shortly before 2 o'clock and unloaded our belongings on to Sir Ulfius and acquainted ourselves with the layout of this 55' narrow boat.  A while later we were given a demonstration by Cliff and we headed off down the Shropshire Union Canal towards Autherley Junction.

Within a couple of hours we turned right on to the Staffs and Worcester canal and headed through the Tettenhall, Compton and Wightwick districts of Wolverhampton.  The weather was indifferent today and the grey cloud eventually produced drizzle leading to rain as the evening closed in.

Friday evening was spent moored just after Mops Farm Bridge and supper was a Chilli con carne pre-prepared by 30% and a substantial quantity of red wine .... bed time was not late!

Saturday, 4th May, 2024

Our original intention was to cruise as far as Kinver before turning and heading back to Brewood. 

As we chugged along, we realised that this was feasible, but could be a bit of a slog. We therefore agreed to turn the boat around at the winding hole**** just after Hinksford Lock and cruise back up the Staffs & Worcester to moor just below The Bratch. 

The Bratch is flight of three locks in very close proximity and very likely to be a bottle neck. We had therefore decided that we would make an early start on Sunday and get through them well before anyone else had stirred.

The weather was lovely and sunny and the canals and locks were an absolute delight showing that Britain's Industrial Heritage is well worth experiencing as a leisure activity. The casual reader might question Wolverhampton as a choice of holiday venue, but I have to report that the canal, towpath and local area was lovely and we soaked in the peaceful atmosphere as we chugged along at four miles per hour. 

Refreshment breaks included The Swan at Compton for a swift couple at lunchtime and The Waggon & Horses at Wombourne for our evening meal. 

Sunday, 5th May, 2024

I woke just after 6 o'clock and headed up the towpath with Hobson. He "did his business" and I checked out The Bratch in the early morning light. The locks were set in our favour and within the hour we were gently slipping in to the lower lock. 

"B" was lock monkey and he soon had the grasp of the process of which lock paddles to open and when. We made trouble free progress and exited the top lock within about thirty minutes.

The rest of the day was much the same as yesterday; bright sunny weather, cold beers and wine and taking in the delights of the canal vistas. We made our way back up to Autherley Junction and were back on to the Shropshire Union by mid afternoon. We continued until we were about half a mile from Brewood Wharf and moored for the evening overlooking the fields leading to St Mary's church, Brewood.

30% had taken the precaution to ring ahead and book us a table for dinner at The Oakley Arms. This hostelry was about a mile and a half from our mooring and the brisk walk to make our reservation had certainly given us an appetite. The food was fantastic and the walk back seemed far shorter than the earlier route march.

Monday, 6th May, 2024

We needed to be back at Brewood Shaft by nine o'clock and this deadline was easily met.  Cliff was on hand to greet us and it took less than an hour to unload the boat and re-pack the car.

An hour or so had us back in Worcester and farewell hugs were exchanged. Back at home we abandoned the car, ensured that Hobson had had a wee and then we both had a massive kip with neither of us stirring until the early afternoon.  We had both had a fabulous break, but had forgotten just how tiring a boating holiday can be.

The rest of the day was spent on the mundanities of unpacking and tidying away.

Tuesday, 7th May 2024

I forgot to mention that I woke yesterday with a painful left eye and it came as little surprise to find that today I am quite sensitive to bright light. I occasionally suffer from corneal abrasions and I seem to have incurred another.

This means that sunglasses are needed whenever outside and indoor activities are preferred.

The first activity of the day was to drop Hobson off at the Vets for his castration ... the poor little devil seemed delighted to be there. I am guessing he won't be a cheerful when we collect him later in the day.

The rest of the day included a chat with our Financial Advisors, who gave 30% and me a list of activities we need to complete and we also had a visit from "Oil Tank Will" to complete a visual check of our oil fired central heating system.

Hobson was collected in the afternoon and is, unsurprisingly, a little subdued, but is not wearing a cone of shame.

Later in the day I had a walk around the Three Miler with Bobbyn, her three terriers, Whiffler and Dog no. 4***** and that just about covers Tuesday.

Wednesday, 8th May 2024

I was home alone today as 30% was out on a felting course at a local craft centre.

My eye is improving but still not up to the lovely sunny weather we are having, so my objective today was to complete a set of forms that are required for an upcoming consultation with a Spinal surgeon.

These were completed and submitted and, if I am totally honest, some sleeping took place on the sofa,

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* Hobson is our 16 month old Apricot Standard Poodle. We, sadly, lost Marauder** back in late September 2022 a month before her 13th birthday. She will never be forgotten, nor replaced, but Hobson arrived in March 2023 as we have learnt that three poodles are "just enough". Hobson is an absolute delight, but can be a little clingy, so we decided that he should accompany us on our mini break.

** "I've got shit to bark at in the After Life Bad Man!"

*** Pronounced brewed/brood

**** A point in the canal where it is wide enough to turn the boat around. 

***** Dog no. 4 was introduced way back in March 2020, but I still need to give her an alias ... let me think on that

A couple of wins

 TP disappeared shortly after nine o'clock this morning to head over to get further acquainted with the Kawasaki Versys, apply L Plates and head over to the Driving Test Centre in Worcester.

Today's primary objective was to get the lawns mowed in advance of our Narrow Boating mini break over the Bank Holiday weekend.  Overnight showers meant an early start was not going to be possible, so I spent the morning on various minor distractions, including the removal of about 10 days of stubble from my chin.

TP called at about half past eleven to let me know that he had passed his test and sincere congratulations were offered. Some parents might be horrified about their children riding motorcycles, but I find myself in a difficult position.  I have ridden motorcycles, in one form or another, for close to 45 years. It would certainly be hypocritical of me to attempt to dissuade TP from riding, but I want to put on record that I am, of course, concerned for his health and safety. 

I have ridden with him on many occasions including the purchase of hist first 125cc Yamaha to the day I let him have a quick run out on the Ducati 996.* He is an incredibly safe rider with great observational skills.  I hope he has as much riding pleasure in the coming years as I have had.

Lunch happened and then the porn mower  was dragged from the shed. I should add, at this point, that the porn mower really needs renaming since it is now 13 and the passing years are starting to show.  I have a new ride-on Stihl mower, but the ground is still way too wet for that beauty, so the porn mower** still gets used on a regular basis.

The lawns here are close to half an acre and it took most of the afternoon, with a couple of breaks, to get them cut. I checked my step counter after they were done and realised that I had walked close to 6,000 steps and covered at least two and a half miles. I was quite surprised by those statistics, but I do have a healthy cynicism of the output accuracy of the Google Fit app.

As the afternoon became the evening, I headed out on the R nineT and dropped a set of keys off with Bubbles. Bubbles and his good lady; Bobbyn are house sitting for us this weekend and, not unusually, our holiday preparations are veering towards disorganised and last-minute.

The final event of the day was a trip in to Redditch to see Andy Parsons Bafflingly Optimistic tour at the Palace Theatre. It was a reasonable gig with the occasional incisive comment that shows what a skilled performer he really is. Despite being knackered after a lot of mowing, both 30% and I thoroughly enjoyed this mid week outing.

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* Sold back in 2021. Not forgotten, but not missed either ... it's probably my age!

** I need the exercise.

Green is good?

 The past couple of days seem to have been mostly consumed by my BMW R nineT. 

It's a convoluted tale, but I will try to be as concise as possible. TP has an A2 motorcycle license* which he has held for many years. He now wants to upgrade to an unlimited A class bike license. This involves repeating the Mod 1 (off road) and Mod 2 (on road) tests on a higher powered machine.

He took a training course earlier in the year, passed the Mod 1 but, unfortunately, did not pass the Mod 2 test. He therefore needed to repeat the Mod 2 test but did not have access to a training school fleet of bikes for the test.

He had already arranged to borrow his mate's Kawasaki Versys 650, which is a little on the tall side, so I asked if he wanted to try my BMW for size. He agreed that this was a good idea, so Monday saw me wander out to the garage and attempt to start the bike. 

None of my bikes had been ridden for at least 18 months as I spent 8 months of 2023 virtually housebound with a spinal condition. The condition is currently in remission, so one of the post-retirement priorities was to get some miles ridden on two wheels.**

Apologies! I digressed. After 18+ months the BMW had a flat battery, despite connection to a trickle charger. There followed an hour of messing around and reading instructions before I simply removed the seat and got an alternative charger connected up.  I also rang my favourite local Motorcycle Dealer/Workshop and got an MOT provisionally booked for the following day, subject to me getting the damned Teutonic beast to start.

The rest of the day was punctuated with visits to the garage to check on the battery charging progress, as indicated by the plentiful, but unintuitive, indicator lights.

Tuesday dawned and I wandered out to the garage to check on progress. I saw multiple green lights on the charger and hoped that this was positive news. A little before nine o'clock I grabbed my helmet, jacket and gloves and wandered out to urge her in to life.

It now gets a bit anticlimactic from here on. The bike started easily and the ride over to the workshop was a delight. Within 40 minutes the test was passed and I returned home to "throw a bucket of water at her" as she was pretty grimy after more than a year in a dusty garage.

TP appeared later in the day, the bike was taxed and we took a ride out to see what he thought. After much consideration he decided that, despite the lower seat height, he would use his friend's Versys.  He said he loved riding it, but found it way too powerful for riding during the test.***

We later realised that the BMW has almost twice the power of the Kawasaki and getting on for three times the grunt of TP's Honda CBR 500. It's no wonder he found it a bit of a handful.

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* Machines of 47 bhp, or less

** I had already got my Moto Guzzi Stornello back on the road at the beginning of April for a three day, retirement celebratory bike tour of Wales with TP and his chums. Unfortunately the Guzzi falls in to the A2 power category and was of no use for TP's test

*** I'm glad I made him endure the hell-hole that is Evesham at the point that Prince Henry's High School releases its students in to the community. The normal chaotic traffic was now at a standstill and low speed crawling was needed to manoeuvre through town. This carefully selected route was certainly using the bike under test conditions.

Lazy Day

 I woke to the sound of rain and discovered that it was bloody cold. The low temperature was reinforced when I accompanied one of the dogs* along the lane for a few yards so he could b) empty his bladder and a) take note of which of the local foxes had visited over night. It was effing freezing!

The miserable weather did not encourage me to get busy and I had a really lazy day. I caught up with TP's news from Thailand and generally mooched about the house doing very little. I extended his knowledge of classic Sci Fi by making him watch Galaxy Quest. He had never seen this little gem and agreed that it had lasted well and was well worth watching.

I then proceeded to have a snooze on the sofa, before waking and deciding that I had definitely had enough of the chilly weather. Kindling was gathered, matches were located ... eventually and a fire was set in the log burner in time for 30%'s return from a shopping trip.

I was appointed head cook this evening and was responsible for rustling up a smoked salmon and pasta dish for dinner. It was judged a success and the ingredients and recipe are outlined below for anyone that might be interested.

Smoked Salmon with Pasta (serves 3)

• 1 large onion, finely chopped
• a good glug of olive oil
• 3 cloves of garlic, crushed
• button mushrooms, sliced
• a slug of white wine (half a glass)
• 1 - 2 tsp of dried thyme
• 100 g smoked salmon, sliced in to thin ribbons
• 200 ml double cream
• 6 - 8 ounces of pasta
• salt and black pepper, to taste

1. Put a frying/saute pan on a medium heat and add a healthy glug of olive oil
2. Add the chopped onions and stir regularly to avoid browning them
3. After 5 minutes, or so, add the thyme, mushrooms and garlic and continue to cook on a medium heat for a further 5 minutes.
4. Add a healthy splash of white wine or cider to deglaze the pan and allow to simmer until most of the wine has evaporated off. This should take about 5 mins
5. Add the sliced smoked salmon, stir though and remove from the heat
6. Meanwhile cook the pasta and drain. Return the pasta to the pan.
7. Add the onion, mushroom and salmon mixture to the pasta and stir in well.
8. Throw in the cream and stir to warm through.
9. Taste, adjust seasoning and serve.

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* Sans coat and hat

I've still got it.

 Today was the day that TP flew home after a month in Thailand. He has spent the first two weeks of his trip travelling solo before meeting up with three of his friends for the final fortnight of the holiday. We have had the odd message and video call with him over the past month and are really looking forward to catching up with him.

I needed to pick up the traveller from Evesham station at 4.30 p.m. this afternoon so, for once, actually had a scheduled appointment that I needed to keep ... more on this later.

The weather is unseasonably cold at the moment and each time I ventured outside I returned wishing that I had donned hat and coat. As a result I spent the first part of the morning pottering* before I steeled myself, put on the aforementioned hat and coat, and headed out with the dogs for a walk. This took longer than expected due to conversational interludes, including one with the Milky Bar Kid who asked me if I was still interested in joining their Game Shoot. I confirmed that I was, but I'm not counting my chickens** yet.

Back at home we lunched before preparing to head out.  Yesterday 30% had asked what time we needed to leave home to collect TP if we popped in to Alcester for a couple of items, then headed over to The Valley at Evesham before arriving at Evesham station at half past four.

She looked at me in incredulous disbelief when I said we needed to leave at half past two. "That's way too early!" she exclaimed. I had barely got two sentences in to my analysis of the journey elements and shopping duration estimates before a look of fatigue passed across her face. Instead I settled with the more concise "remember that I have spent a good chunk of my working life estimating how long activities will take".

30% accepted this with good grace and, unusually, she was ready to leave home at 2.30 sharp. As we headed in to Alcester I pointed out that my estimate included contingency, grabbing a couple of items from Waitrose and I had also factored in twenty minute for a coffee and cake at The Valley.

Well! The afternoon panned out exactly as I had estimated and we arrived at the station 5 minutes before TP's train pulled in ... If I say so, myself, I always a bloody good estimator.

It was lovely to catch up with TP, despite his jet lag, and we look forward to more of his travellers tales as soon as he has got some sleep.

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* Looking busy, but achieving very little

** or rather pheasants

Getting stuff done.

 My plans for today weren't particularly arduous.

I put a batch of honey on to warm after breakfast and then headed out with the dogs for a walk. 

The walk was timed to perfection and I avoided both the pre-work walkers and those that perambulate after dropping their offspring off at school.  We met no-one and enjoyed the bright, but still cool, morning.

On our return I gave the honey a stir and judged that I had time for a coffee before it would be ready for decanting in to jars. Towards the end of the morning I had bottled the first batch of honey and made preparations to process the last of the 30lb tub,

I put the last batch on after lunch and continued my project for the ELF.  I won't go in to detail at this point, but it involves some rather beautifully figured oak disks combined with clear epoxy resin. This afternoon's activity was to set up a level platform that would ensure the resin sat evenly across the surface of the oak. This was more complicated than expected as also needed to ensure that the platform was leak proof and could be covered to prevent dust falling on the surface.*

I eventually got the platform arranged to my satisfaction and then carefully applied masking tape to the oak to retain the resin. It was then a matter of measuring out the resin and hardener, mixing them together for an eternity and then gently pouring the resin on to the wood.

I then offered prayers to various gods in the hope that the resin would set bubble and dust free.

The rest of the afternoon was spent bottling the last of the honey** and tidying up the various implements and receptacles used.

While all of this was going on 30% had nipped out to visit a friend and agree provision buying duties, as we will be spending the early May Bank Holiday with her and her husband narrow boating in Staffordshire ... That is highly likely to meet the definition of a booze cruise if ever there was one! 

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* The resin has a 72 hour set time and any dust falling on the surface will adversely affect the final appearance.

** Four jars have already been purchased from the little stall outside the gate. I only need to shift another dozen before I enter the wonderful land of profit.

Bloody Rodents!

 Thursday started with the continuing task of processing the bulk load of honey. 

I have a 30lb tub of semi solid honey that needs to be warmed, but not too much, so that it can be poured in to jars and sealed. This involves a Bain-Marie technique to avoid overheating the honey and damaging the flavour. Our slow cooker is the tool of choice, but I am limited to batches of about 5lbs, so this is going to take a few days to complete.

After putting on the first batch to warm, 30% and I headed over to a local workshop to drop off the Defender for its MOT test. I had gently woken the beast on Monday, after its Winter hibernation in the car port. It rumbled in to life relatively easily and all seemed well, but a test run down the road showed a fault with its ABS and traction control systems. The brakes were fine, but the ABS wasn't kicking in.

I alerted the chap at the workshop to this fault and he seemed unperturbed and advised that he would look in to it.

The remainder of the morning was spent on honey bottling duties and, shortly before lunch, I received a call to advise that the Defender was ready for collection. 30% and I headed out in the early afternoon to pick it up. 

The chap at the workshop advised that "I had friends" and lifted the bonnet to show a rodent nest in the vicinity of the brake master cylinder. It seems that the little fuckers had chewed through the ABS loom as part of their nest building activities. He had rectified this electrical fault for a very low charge of £30 and advised that, once fixed, the Defender had flown through its annual test with no "advisories".*

Back at home, I pottered around the house and garden for the rest of the afternoon and took the opportunity to steam clean the Defender's seats. These did not look their best after 6 months in the car port and a blast of steam followed by a wipe over with a towel seems to have spruced them up quite nicely.

This evening I was joined by "Bobbyn" for a walk around the Three Miler. On most Tuesdays and Thursdays, for the past few months, she joins me after work and we walk together in a vain attempt to improve our fitness. She brings her three terriers, who enjoy the rural scents and I think she enjoys the opportunity to vent after a long day in the waste management industry.

In the evening 30% and I stumbled across Allelujah, a film adaptation of an Alan Bennet play of the same name.  It was rather good with a cast of some of Britain's finest acting talents; Dench, Jacobi, Jennifer Saunders. 

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* Unlike last year when the inspection suggested that I should keep an eye on the rusty front springs and the condition of tires which are still the original fitments from 2009!

What day is it?

 After reading yesterday's Journal entry I realised that I had barely hinted at the reason for resuming The Journal. 

The main reason is that I now have the time. I know I have plenty of activities to fill my hours with a large garden, three dogs, motorcycles etc*, but I used to feel guilty for grabbing a few** minutes from my working day to recount the previous day's activities, trials and tribulations. Now my time is my own and this is something that I can to do without a trace of guilt.

Now to the main purpose of today's entry ... Anyone who knows me really well will know that I don't have a great grasp on days and dates. I have no problem with the time of day, but ask me the date and I would need to check a calendar and I can be vague on what day of the week it is too.*** 

Working meant that I needed to remember, or at least confirm, what day and date it was to ensure that deadlines were met and meetings attended. Now I am retired, a task or activity can be done at any time and there is much less need to schedule. 

I don't need to wait until the weekend, and hope it isn't raining, to dig over the vegetable garden. I can do it today if the weather is fine. 

Another significant reason for resuming the Journal is therefore to help in anchoring me to the Gregorian Calendar. I am pretty certain that without some form of calendrical discipline I would rapidly go feral and end up like one of those Japanese Soldiers that were posted to, and abandoned on, a remote Pacific islet and still think it is 1952.

I also think that it will give an element of structure to my day, which may be beneficial.

I'll finish by giving a quick summary of today's activities. 30% disappeared early to spend the day with The Coven watching a matinee of Jesus Christ Superstar in Birmingham. This left me home alone bottling honey.

We finally sold the last of the 2022 bumper crop**** a couple of days ago. Our little roadside honey stall does quite good business, so with no chance of a honey crop before August I approached a local beekeeper to ask if he would permit me to bulk buy from him and sell under my own branding. He was more than happy to oblige and I have made a start on clarifying, filtering and bottling 30lbs of local honey for resale from the doorstep.

This wasn't an arduous task, but it did require my attention throughout the day. When not involved in stirring or sterilising jars, I did head out on the Three Miler with the dogs for a constitutional.

Now the more attentive reader will note that there is no mention of a 2023 honey crop and there is a good reason for that, but that can wait for another day.

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* I suppose I had better add family to that list too!

**"Few"! If only Dantes Nine Circles of Hell and The Neat & Today Piano Movers knew how many of their hours I had wasted jotting down this rubbish.

*** I can definitely confirm that it has a "y" in it, if that helps.

**** Over 260lbs from 5 hives

How to begin ... again!

It's a good job that I don't hold my breath when pausing for inspiration. As one of nature's procrastinators, I would have expired many, many years ago! Breathe Bad Man, breathe. Here I now find myself, almost four years since I last posted in the Journal, wondering how to begin ... again?

Shall I note down the long list of excuses for not posting, attempt a summary of the past four years, or shall I just start wittering about my trivial achievements of the past twenty four hours? 

It is probably best if there is an explanation ... 31st March 2024 was my last day of work ... probably! After thirty nine years in a variety of roles, I finally decided that I just really didn't want to do it any more. I realised that I had no problem in finding something to occupy my time, and many of the things I wanted to do were being put off to sit in front of a corporate laptop waiting for something to happen.

As 30% noted, I actually gave up work for Lent as it was on Shrove Tuesday that I politely advised my current employer that "their role did not meet my expectations", gave them a calendar month's notice and did as little as possible until I sloped off on Maundy Thursday.

I have to admit that I had a huge amount of support from 30% in making this decision. She has been semi-retired for a while and finally gave up her last part-time job at the beginning of December, last year.  She dutifully warned me of the challenges I was likely to encounter, particularly regarding identity and income, based on her own experiences. All I can do is see how the next days, months and years unfold to see how I am impacted by this new stage of my life.

The Neat & Tidy Piano Movers* also deserve a special mention in my decision making process. In April last year, they advised that me, my colleagues and our manager were to be made redundant at the end of June. Fortuitously I was approached on the very next day by a Recruitment Consultant asking if I was interested in an exciting** opportunity. I took the bait, polished up my CV and sent it off. I also took advantage of The Piano Movers financial planning benefit for employees over the ago of 55. 

The Piano Movers generously part fund the services of a Financial Advisor, so 30% and I spent many hours collating financial information and submitted it for the scrutiny of an FA who had been recommended by a friend.

Whilst this was going on my application for the new job was progressing and I appeared to be making my way through their interview process successfully.*** 

Now let us jump forward to early June and my final interview with the prospective new employer. That day was a busy one as 30% and I also had our final assessment call with our Financial Advisors. That call came first and they uttered a phrase that I will never forget, "You don't need to work Bad Man".  

Now it has been said that there are two types of people; those who live to work and those who work to live****. I am most definitely a person who has worked to live and this utterance from the FA was accompanied by the proverbial choir of angels singing exaltations in the background.

I suppose I should add that I landed the new job but it is fair to say that my heart wasn't really in it and it turned out to be the complete antithesis of its description during the recruitment process. I stuck at it for nine months but, in the end, I decided that I would rather be free from the home office to do things that please me and others rather than pick at bloated carcasses of IT outsourcing solutions in an attempt to make them palatable to customers and suppliers.*****

I am now nearly a month in to my retirement and have never been so busy. 30% and I celebrated her 60th Birthday with a few days at Llangennith on The Gower, I have constructed a mini desk for the back bedroom and am currently working on a little project for The Elf.

I can already confirm the utterance of so many retired people, "We don't know how we found the time for work"!

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* Courtesy of The Simpsons 

** It wasn't exciting, but the salary was reasonable.

*** So successfully that after perusal of my CV and interview #1 I was offered a more senior role and more money.

**** There are also those who prefer to rely on The State to live

***** I didn't actually mind working on the solutions, it was that I had had my fill of the endless and inane Corporate Bull Shit.

What have I been doing?

Both work and home life have been quite hectic and, yet again, I have failed in my efforts to maintain The Journal.  Here is another half arsed summary of the comings and goings here at The Pile.

The weekend started with a trip over to Hailes Shooting Ground with Bubbles and BBQ Dave.  They both shot really well and I was pleased that my performance finally seems to be getting back to where it was before the lockdown started.*

I almost forgot to mention that Whiffler joined us up at Hailes and seemed to enjoy the new experience, especially the fuss and attention he got from the other shooters.  The reason for taking him was that we had a house viewing that morning, 30% was quite happy to walk Marauder and #3 while the viewing took place, but couldn't manage all three of the dogs.  So, Whiffler came shooting with the lads.

After shooting I spent an hour or so with Bubbles while he fitted a new Bluetooth DAB head unit to the Defender.  It seemed that our entire day was spent together as 30% and I were back there in the evening for one of Bubbles' "meat fest" barbecues.

Most of Sunday and Monday were spent attempting to tidy up the garage.  It was built when we extended The Pile back in 2007 and I swear that there was stuff in there that hasn't seen the light of day since it was first put on the shelves.

Over the course of the two days 30% and I worked through the various boxes trying to identify possessions that we no longer needed.  It is fair to say that this led to a few heated debates as I fall in to the "just chuck the bloody stuff away" camp, whilst 30% wants to either keep it, recycle it or spend an incredible amount of time trying to re-home stuff.**

Despite the strategic disagreements we have made fantastic start on the garage clearance.  A Defender full of crap went to the local refuse site and a Mini full of unwanted belongings went to local lady who is a fund raiser for the local Brownie Troop.

We now have shelf space in the garage and it looks a whole lot tidier, providing you don't look up in to the roof space ... That is yet to be tackled.

On the work front it is more of the same.  I'm busy trying to define a way forward on the latest project and have managed to persuade the Sales Guy that my proposed course of action is the right one.  That is a result, but it still means that I have a metaphorical mountain to climb over the coming weeks.

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* I shot 51% overall with individual stand scores of 62.5% and 75% on five of the twelve stands. (5/8 and 6/8)

** By way of example we have 396 jar lids that don't fit the honey jars we use.  They were supplied in error and we were not charged for them.  My approach is to just put them out for recycling.  30%, on the other hand, advertised them on Facebook and has had several exchanges over the past few days with a local chap who MAY want 20 of them.  For fuck's sake! 

Ouch!

One story from the past week that slipped my memory was Marauder's visit to the Vet.

At some point over the weekend before last we had noticed that she seemed to have an infection on her paw, so, at the beginning of last week, she was taken to her preferred private health practitioner.  The vet confirmed our diagnosis, prescribed a course of steroids and antibiotics and advised that we should bring her back in a week if there was no improvement.

At the beginning of this week her foot was marginally improved, but it was clear that the infection was still present.  We toddled off to the Vets, once again, and it was decided that she needed an x-ray and to have the site of the infection explored and lanced.*

To cut a long story short, another £400 pounds was added to last week's £60 bill.  There didn't appear to be anything nasty embedded in her foot and she has another course of antibiotics to consume.  She will, of course, be taking it easy on the end of the sofa until the incision has healed.

Despite her advancing years, Marauder appears to be in robust health ... this isn't that surprising as she appears to get better medical care than I do.**

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*  When I returned home without Marauder, 30% started to imagine horrible outcomes and ended up heading up to the Vets to say goodbye to M ... just in case!   

** Marauder ... "Badman, You should go private like me"

Catching up

It's been a week since I last made an entry in The Journal.  It would be untruthful to say that I hadn't had time, but I have been quite busy and, after brain melting days sat at a laptop, the last thing I want to do is prolong the experience by making another entry in BMJ.

So, what have I been up to?  On the work front I have been handed a new assignment and have spent much of the past week thinking "what the hell am I supposed to be doing?"  After several conversations I think I may have an understanding of what is needed and now have a very wordy PowerPoint presentation to waft in the face of the Sales Lead.  

I'm not expecting the Sales bod to be particularly informative, but the presentation is a documented view of my understanding and proposed course of action.  He can disagree and advise of what he really wants, but, based on previous experience, I am expecting him to pay minimal attention, agree and then slope off before he gets landed with some proper work.

So that was work covered; succinctly "very busy on a new project".

Away from work I had another three day weekend and it, literally, started with a bang, or more accurately hundreds of bangs ...

On Saturday morning Grubby Mark and I headed up to Burford for a simulated game shoot.  Basically this involved six pair of shooters stood in a line about twenty yards from each other.  At the sound of the starting whistle, clay targets were launched in the general direction of the shooters, simulating pheasants being driven towards the guns.

It was a fantastic experience with each "drive" seeming to last about five minutes and the targets came in thick and fast. There were so many incoming targets it was necessary to have your partner reload your gun after each pair of shots rather than waste time rummaging in a pocket for cartridges.* 

Over the course of the day we ate and drank plenty and shot nearly five hundred cartridges on eight simulated drives at four different sites.  It was a great experience and I would definitely be up for another simulated game day.

The game day was surprisingly tiring considering that we didn't exactly walk very far and spent most of our time blowing clays to smithereens, talking, eating and drinking!  Despite this seeming to take very little effort I was exhausted by the time I got home and was glad that Sunday was a quiet day.

We were joined at lunch time by M&M** for a quick bite.  They were on their way up to visit M's relatives in Birmingham and we had arranged for them to break their journey and lunch with us, so that we could catch up on each others' news.  We had a super couple of hours and it was hard to part when we had so much talking and laughing left to do.***  Hopefully we can arrange a "sleep over" in the not too distant future and continue the fun.

Later in the day we had our regular Sunday Zoom Cocktail hour.  It was just 30%, me and C&S.  We had another rambling natter that ended with us deciding to have an overnight stay with them in Abbots Langley now that is permitted following the recent easing of lock down restrictions.

Monday was spent with the bees and it is probably best if I leave it at that!  The weather has been pretty poor all week and it seems that they have spent most of their time huddled on the frames.  Very little nectar seems to have been gathered in over the course of the week and many of the colonies seem intent on swarming.  I'm finding that eight hives is way too many to manage and am definitely planning to cut them back at the end of the season.****

So that's a brief and scruffy summary of the past week; a lot of confusing work, much shooting and a modicum of socialising too.

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*  At the end of each simulated drive, the shooter and loader swap roles and the clays are repeated, so that each gets a turn.

**  From deepest, darkest Wiltshire ... Moonraker country!

***  and drinking too!

****  Colonies can be united late in the season, so watch out for a muddled narrative on that in September.

A blast from the past

Whilst rummaging around for my copy of Fitter, Fitter & Blamey, I happened to take a quick look inside the large wooden trunk on the landing.  It is filled to the brim with old photographs and, for some reason, I selected a wallet at random and thumbed through the snaps.  I was delighted to come across a couple of photos of my first "big bike".

It was a Honda VF500 FII and I can still remember the registration; C124 UWP.*  I have many fond recollections of her and she was quite special in her day.  This was one of the early incarnations of the Honda V4 motorcycle engine that was massively successful on both road and race track.  According to Wikipedia it is regarded as one of the finest handling bikes of the 1980s.  I occasionally search eBay ... just on the off chance of being reunited.

I bought her from Skellerns in Worcester, shortly after passing my motorcycle test, in July 1987 and can still recall the excitement and trepidation as I wobbled off up the London Road.  She was my only form of transport for a good few years and, when I moved down to South West London later that year, she made my daily commute from Motspur Park to Hinchley Wood an adventure and delight. 

It was a few minutes work to scan the photos and it's really nice to see her again ... She's still very pretty!

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*  A check of the DVLA website shows that she was last MOT tested in 2006 and had nearly 55,000 miles on the clock.  It also strangely records her colour as yellow?